


Not Like Those Teenage Heterosexuals

by Humansunshine



Series: WLW Fic Bingo 2019 [7]
Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: F/F, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Mild Sexual Tension, Mutual Pining, Sharing a Bed, Sharing a Room, Trans Aline Penhallow, Transgender Author
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-12
Updated: 2019-08-12
Packaged: 2020-08-20 05:50:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,694
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20222857
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Humansunshine/pseuds/Humansunshine
Summary: “It would only be for this weekend, and I promise I will pay for everything.” Helen had her hands clasped in front of her like she was begging, and Aline really didn’t have the willpower to say no to her when her eyes were that big and earnest.“Didn’t you watch To All The Boys I Loved Before? Pretending to be in a relationship never ends well.” Aline pointed out.“Oh yeah, because falling dramatically in love with each other and living happily ever after after smooching on a baseball field would be terrible.”





	Not Like Those Teenage Heterosexuals

**Author's Note:**

  * For [maiaslightwood](https://archiveofourown.org/users/maiaslightwood/gifts).

> This is (most likely) my last fic for the Shadowhunters WLW fic bingo! It's for team blue, and fills 'fake dating/marriage' square. I've really enjoyed this challenge, and to thank Rike for organising it I'm dedicating this one to her!

“It would only be for this weekend, and I promise I will pay for everything.” Helen had her hands clasped in front of her like she was begging, and Aline really didn’t have the willpower to say no to her when her eyes were that big and earnest. 

“Didn’t you watch To All The Boys I Loved Before? Pretending to be in a relationship never ends well.” Aline pointed out.

“Oh yeah, because falling dramatically in love with each other and living happily ever after after smooching on a baseball field would be terrible.”

Aline blushed. “It was a lacrosse field.”

Helen laughed. “My apologies. Look,” Helen tugged on her hand, “we’re not like those teenage heterosexuals. We actually have communication skills, and we’re always honest with each other, aren’t we?”

“Yes,” Aline lied. It was getting scarily easy to lie to Helen about her feelings. 

“Well then, what do we have to fear?” Helen pointed out, “it’ll be fun. And it’ll keep that creepy guy Simon off my back.”

“Okay,” Aline relented, “I’ll pretend to be your girlfriend this weekend. But I get to order whatever I want at dinner at the hotel!”

“Get lobster and steak if you want,” Helen insisted, “it’s all on me.” 

Aline hummed, smiling slightly. The thought of being spoiled for a whole weekend by the woman she’d been pining for for over a year didn’t sound so bad. And Helen really did need her help; she’d been complaining about an over-familiar work colleague for ages, and Aline didn’t like the idea of Helen being stuck upstate with him all weekend. The work retreat was supposed to be fun and relaxed, and Aline was happy to protect Helen from any asshole cis men.

Of course, she didn’t realise just how committed Helen would be to preserving the lie. When they got to the hotel a few days later, Aline was floored to discover that Helen had booked a room with a double bed for them. Helen must’ve sensed her surprise, because the moment they were alone in the elevator she turned to face Aline. 

“I thought it’s better to be safe than sorry. Simon’s the kinda guy who’ll invite himself up to our room for a nightcap or some shit. And it’ll be cute, like a sleepover.” She smiled, and Aline must not have been hiding her anxiety very well, because her face fell. “I can sleep on the couch if you want, it’s no big deal.” 

“No!” Aline insisted, shaking her head, “it’s fine. I just didn’t expect it, I didn’t think about it. It makes sense, and it’s all good.” 

“Are you sure? I don’t want to make you uncomfortable,” Helen put her hand on Aline’s arm.

“I’m not uncomfortable, it just caught me off guard. It’s fine, like you said, it’ll be like a sleepover.” 

Helen nodded. “Yeah, exactly. What’s cuddling between friends?” 

Aline could feel the heat on the back of her neck spreading to her cheeks, and she prayed that the fluorescent lighting was hiding her blush. Cuddling?! How was she meant to hide her astronomical crush with Helen cuddling into her? 

When they got to the room, Helen immediately started digging in her bag. “I’m gonna shower before dinner. I feel gross from the drive up. You need the bathroom before I go in?” 

“Uh, no,” Aline replied, shrugging off her jacket and turning to the wardrobe to hang it up, “it’s cool, you go ahead. I’ll just- OH!” As Aline glanced back around, she saw that Helen had taken off her shirt, and she whirled back around, her eyes going wide.

“You’re so jumpy today,” Helen laughed, “anyone would think you’d never seen some boobs befo- Oh. I’m sorry, I didn’t think. I didn’t mean to make you feel dysphoric.” 

“What? No! No, that’s not-” Aline assured her, turning back around. “That’s not why I didn’t look. I just… You know. I’m sorry. My friends in school used to be weird about changing rooms, I guess… I still feel like a creep when I look at women in their underwear.” 

Helen hummed, standing there a little awkwardly, her hand scratching the opposite arm, though all it did was squish her boobs together. “I get you. I had a lot of those feelings too, when I was first starting to date women. Internalised homophobia is a bitch.”

“Yeah,” Aline agreed, her eyes stubbornly on Helen’s face. “It is.”

Helen smiled slightly. “I’m gonna be honest, I’ve checked you out enough times to be totally okay with you looking if you want to.” 

Aline giggled. “Yeah, right.”

“I mean it! When we went to the beach last year you must’ve noticed my bi panicking.” 

“Maybe,” Aline shrugged, “I put it down to heatstroke.”

Helen laughed. “Of course you did.” 

“I think you just want me to compliment your abs,” Aline hummed as Helen shimmied out of her trousers, leaving her in matching red underwear. 

“I work hard for them, they deserve praise.”

“They do,” Aline agreed, tearing her eyes away from them, “they’re awesome.”

Helen grinned, her towel under her arm. “See you in a bit.”

Once the bathroom door was shut and the shower was on, Aline sighed. It was so difficult to know if Helen was just being her normal flirtatious, charming self, or whether she was actually trying to make a move. Aline figured she’d hold out, see how the weekend progressed. After all, she told herself, Helen might have engineered this whole thing in the hope that she and Aline ended up like the teen heterosexuals in To All The Boys. Though on the other hand, she thought, tilting her head to the side, Helen had said that they wouldn’t fall into the trap of not communicating… So if Helen was actually interested, wouldn’t she have said something?

Aline wrinkled her nose, pulling out the clothes she was going to wear for dinner with Helen’s colleagues. It wouldn’t do any good to guess and second-guess at Helen’s thought process. She’d just go with the flow, see what happened. A spark of hope had been lit inside her, and she had to make sure it didn’t grow into an inferno without some real evidence that Helen was actually interested in her.

~~~~~~~~~~

Helen had no idea what more she could do to communicate to Aline that she wanted to be girlfriends for real. After the flirtation about the abs, Helen was sure that she had Aline on the hook, but during dinner with the gang from work, Aline barely paid any attention to her. She got along well with Helen’s work friends, which was nice, but… Helen was a little deflated at just how interested Aline was in hearing about Izzy’s work.

“I hope you had a good time tonight,” Helen said as they stepped into the elevator at the end of the night, keeping hold of Aline’s hand until Aline pulled away. 

“I did, yeah. The staff all seem really nice… Except Simon, obviously,” Aline amended, “he’s annoying as hell.” 

“Yeah, he really is,” Helen agreed. “And just for the record again, if you don’t feel comfortable sharing a bed I really don’t mind sleeping on the couch.” 

“It’s fine,” Aline promised, touching Helen’s arm, “like you said, what’s some cuddling between friends… Right?” 

Helen smiled. “Right.” 

Despite Aline’s assurances, the atmosphere when they got back to the room was a little awkward. They both stood there looking at each other in the low light, and Helen decided to throw all caution to the wind. If push came to shove, she could just get another room. As she started to tell Aline how she felt, Aline spoke too, and both of them chuckled nervously. 

“You go first,” Aline insisted.

“Okay…” Helen breathed, knotting her fingers together in front of her. “Remember how I said that we wouldn’t be like that Lara Condor movie because we’d be honest with each other?”

“Yeah…”

“I haven’t been honest,” she confessed. “I was… Well, I was kinda hoping that maybe if we acted like girlfriends you might realise that… I like you. In a gay way.” 

Aline’s eyebrows were raised when Helen chanced a look up at her. “I’ve been weird with you because I was hoping the same thing,” she admitted, “I mean, I can barely string a sentence together around you sometimes.”

“Wait, you like me too? For real?” Helen checked.

Aline nodded, biting her lip. “So much for honesty, huh?” 

Helen smiled widely. “At least we’re being honest now.” 

“True,” Aline sighed, hugging herself. “So… What now?” 

“I’ll sleep on the couch,” Helen answered, “just because…”

Aline swallowed hard. “Right.”

They got ready for bed with their backs to each other, both reeling from the news that the other felt the same way they did. Aline handed Helen a pillow and blanket from the cupboard, electricity sparking up her body when Helen’s hand brushed hers. When their eyes met, Helen shivered, the move barely noticeable. Aline cleared her throat and looked away, climbing under the covers. 

“When we get back to the city, I wanna take you on a real date,” Helen told her nervously as she made herself comfortable on the couch. “We’ve known each other a long time, but… This feels like a new beginning.” 

“Helen?” 

“Mmm?” She asked, turning her head towards the bed. 

Aline turned out the light, leaving them in darkness. “We’re being honest, right?” 

“Of course,” Helen answered, her heart sinking. 

Aline hesitated. 

“Be honest with me, Aline,” she pressed.

“I… I want you over here. With me.” 

“Oh?” Helen’s voice sounded slightly strangled. 

Aline squirmed, her cheeks warm. “Yes.”

Helen jumped off the couch and got into bed next to Aline, the two women lying on their sides facing each other. “What else do you want?” Helen whispered, close enough to make out Aline’s face. 

“I want you to kiss me. And… Other things.” 

Helen felt herself grin. “Oh?” 

“Shut up and kiss me, asshole,” Aline mumbled, her fingers grasping Helen’s pyjama shirt.

Helen turned over so she was hovering over Aline and let their lips fall together, humming as Aline pulled her close.


End file.
